Chapter 8

I open my eyes to see Derek lying on a cot near a window. A survey of the room proves that I’m on a hospital bed but not in a hospital. I feel as if I’ve been stuck by a four by four in the back of my head. My head is covered in gauze. I try to lift my head, which causes a groan to escape my lips.

When Derek hears the groan, he rushes stand by my side. I run my gaze over his face. He looks as if he hasn't been sleeping very well.

"Hey! How are you doing, sweetheart?"

I shrug which sends a sharp pain through my body. Derek notices the wince and apologizes.

"It's okay! Don't worry about moving.” I look up into his eyes and see an emotion that I can’t quite decipher.

“You're lucky to be alive. We’re at Charlie's house. He has a twin brother that is also a doctor.” He sits down and grabs my hand, very gently.

“You got hit by some flying debris from the tornado. Bernie just happened to be across the street and he saw you get hit. When the threat was over, he came to help. He noticed who you were and suggested that we come here.” He glances around the room before his eyes land back on me. “You will be in and out for a while. You have a lot of injuries and he is giving you sleeping aids to help you sleep while you heal."

I try to smile, but even that gives me a headache. I look at him questioningly. I want to know what he’s doing. He doesn’t need to stay with me while I sleep. But I can’t even lift a finger. A few seconds later, Bernie comes in. I gasp, a soundless noise, because he looks just like his brother.

"Hey there! How are you?” He pauses. “Never mind, don't answer that. I have good news, better news, and bad news for you. But you can only know the better news.” Seeing my confusion, and anger, he sighs. “You are not ready for those discussions yet.” He carried on.

“The better news is that you will be just fine. I have some pain medication, with a little bit of sleeping agent, to help you sleep.” I move to take the medicines because, since he mentioned pain, that’s all I can feel. “No, don't move, it goes into your IV. You won't be awake in a few moments. I’m going to send Derek home. He really needs to get cleaned up. He’s looking a little rough. So don't worry about him."

He puts the medicine in the IV and checks my vitals before he leaves. Derek grabs my hand and says that he will be back. I can feel him give me a soft kiss on my forehead, and says something else, but I really can’t tell what he was saying because sleep is taking over. I’m back in another memory. This time we are in front of the priest I had seen in the earlier vision.

My Dad and I are both tied and sitting on the floor. The room is circular and, besides the current situation, very beautiful. There are pictures painted on all the walls. Some are of children being born, and others are of war and death, but the artist did a beautiful job.

The windows are very colorful. Some were purple, red, blue, and clear. The way the sun shines on them makes a rainbow effect all over the floors. There is a statue of a raven sitting behind the priest. It stands about ten feet tall and eight feet wide.

It looks very menacing. Much like how the priest is currently staring at my father, with his lips curled into a snarl.

"So, Wizard Dennis, you refuse to be of service to us?"His gravelly voice snaps my attention over to him.

"I’m not a Wizard. I’m a scientist. I came from the year 2013. I only figured out time travel.” The priest seems to finally notice me. “NO! Please, leave her out of this. She knows nothing!"

The priest grabs the back of my hair, with sounds like a snarl, and pulls it backwards.

"If she doesn't know anything, then we don't need to hear her, do we? “He smiles evilly and I feel such dread that I can’t even seem to breathe. “Let's see if this will get you to confess, Wizard. Guard, bring me that torch."

I start struggling to get free but, as I try, the priest slaps me. My face feels hot and sore and it takes a few minutes to get out of the daze. But as soon as I do, I start trying to get free again. It’ too late. The guard has made it across the room with the torch. I try to kick out as the priest shoves me roughly to the guard.

"Hold her still. This is going to hurt, a lot. We need the Wizard to see every torment that this causes. We need him to help us conquer the West."

He grabs a piece of splinter off the bottom of the torch and lights it on fire. He douses the fire out, crumples it up and shoves it down my throat. The guards hold on me is too tight and I feel his shocked gasp.

I didn’t have time to process the fact because the wood burns the back of my throat. I start to scream but end up choking instead. The pain was is unbearable that I start retching. The guard drops me on the ground, as he has been told, and backs up a few paces.

When I was finish, and lay on the floor, he picks me up again. He holds me up and pulls my hair in his hands. The priest is walking towards my Dad, who has stood up with a look of rage in his eyes. My head starts to pound and tears have me almost blinded.

"Now, Wizard, what do you say?

"I tell you, I don't have magic.” I can hear the anguish in my dad’s voice. “I’m not a Wizard and I know nothing of weapons.” Anger replaces anguish when my dad looks at me again. I can see the determination in his eyes, and my heart plummets. “After what you just did to my daughter, why would I help you?" he growled.

"Oh, no. That is only the beginning of what I can do to your daughter. I can do much worse. Do you want me to do that?"

"No! Please we're not lying to you."

"You say that you can get me to the future? Yet, you claim not to be a Wizard.” The priest looks back over to me. “Your daughter, she's pretty, yes? I will give you until sunset to make up your mind. However, there is no guarantee what will happen to your pretty daughter. Guards, lock them up." the priest says while stroking his gray beard thoughtfully.

After the priest leaves, I hear the guard whisper in my ear, "Sorry, Milady. I apologize for this in advance." But he pulls us so roughly that I must have imagined it. Back in the dungeon, I collapse onto the floor and my Dad rushes over to me.

"Are you okay, honey? Let me see."

He tries to touch my throat but it’s very sensitive and I flinch away.

We both start crying and I manage to get out a weak, "I'm sorry, Dad." before I start coughing up blood.

"Guards! Guards! My daughter needs some water. She's bleeding!"

I hear the rattle of keys and the same guard from before runs in. He sees me huddled on the ground and checks for himself to see if I’m spitting up blood. When he sees the pile on the floor, he walks to the door and asks the guard for water. After a few minutes, the guards return.

The first guard, the one that held me for the priest, walks over and moves my hair from my face and tries to help me drink. But, I move quickly out of his reach and give him the best death glare that I can offer.

The second guard snickers and says something like "Joseph is too weak." The first guard scowls and shoves the water into my Dad's hands as he storms out, shoving the guards out the door.

Trying to drink the water, is a bad idea. I choke and spit the water all over the floor. I choke, and retch, for a while as my Dad runs his fingers through my hair. He gently rocks me back and forth as he sings my favorite bedtime song, the one that my Mom sang to me before she died. Soon, I fell asleep.